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Monday, July 11, 2016

Celebrating a Year of Opera

Our Favorite Moments of the 2015/16 Season

By Lucy Caplan, Education & Community Engagement Intern

October: We kicked off the Season with our annual Opera Gala.The evening began with the spectacular Opening Night performance of La Bohème at the Shubert Theatre, with pre-show and post-show parties at the Wang filled with dancing, delicious desserts, and champagne.

Photo: Pierce Harman for Boston Lyric Opera

October: We welcomed the talented singers of the children’s chorus Voices Boston for our production of La Bohème. 12 young artists, led by director Kirsten Shetler, joined us for the production.

Photo: T. Charles Erickson for Boston Lyric Opera

October: We had the privilege of hearing directly from composer Philip Glass at the MFA’s Shapiro Celebrity Lecture Series. BLO cast members kicked off the event with performances of scenes from In the Penal Colony, and a conversation between Mr. Glass and WGBH’s Jared Bowen was filled with fascinating insights about the composer’s illustrious career.

Photo: Eric Antoniou for Boston Lyric Opera

November: We launched ourOpera Annex production of In The Penal Colony at the Boston Center for the Arts. At the post-show talkback, the audience heard insights from our artistic production team about how we mounted an opera in the Cyclorama.

Photo: T. Charles Erickson for Boston Lyric Opera

December: Sparkling melodies rang out through the galleries of the MFA at Brindisi! Italian and French Drinking Songs. After a performance by BLO artists, attendees enjoyed food and drink inspired by the music, a lively discussion, and – last but not least – a singalong!

Photo: Boston Lyric Opera

January: Students in Boston and beyond had the chance to learn about opera when BLO’s Emerging Artists visited their schools. More than 700 students at 11 different schools had the opportunity to enjoy live performances by professionally trained singers .

Photo: Boston Lyric Opera

February: The highlight of Opera Night at the Boston Public Library was a delightful surprise: the great-niece of Sibyl Sanderson (Massenet’s favorite soprano), who lives in Boston, brought along a copy of The Sorrows of Young Werther inscribed by Massenet himself! Hosted by BLO Music Director and Conductor David Angus, the event also explored Werther through a mixture of commentary and live performances by members of the cast.

Photo: Eric Antoniou for Boston Lyric Opera

March: We invited you to “Add Your Love” to BLO’s production of Werther by submitting a love letter.

Photo: T. Charles Erickson for Boston Lyric Opera

April: We were honored to host Alexander Lehar, grand-nephew of composer Franz Lehár, who attended opening night of The Merry Widow. Mr. Lehar is pictured here with conductor Alexander Joel (the half-brother of Billy Joel!) and BLO General & Artistic Director Esther Nelson.

Photo: Pierce Harman

May: BLO former and current Emerging Artists serenaded shoppers and diners with opera classics all about food and drink at an Opera Pop-Up concert at the Boston Public Market, part of ArtWeek Boston. Watch a video of their performance here!

Photo: Boston Lyric Opera

June: Students presented world premieres of their classroom operas at schools all over greater Boston. Over 350 students participated in the Create Your Own Opera Partnership program this year, working intensively with BLO Resident Teaching Artists and classroom teachers to write and perform their own original operas.

Photo: Boston Lyric Opera

Thank you for sharing our 2015/16 Season with us, and we hope you'll join us for our 2016/17 40th Season! Purchase online or call our Audience Services team at 617.542.6772.